Wednesday, March 01, 2006

Some More Thoughts on Israel, Eschatology, and Evangelical Thought

In couple of previous posts I wrote about some of my reservations about Israel's exaltation in the eyes of many evangelicals. I tried to point out that there are Gentiles who are just as 'chosen' as the Jewish people of old. I never said that the church has 'replaced' Israel, and I also never said that God was going to be unfaithful to the covenant promises He made to Israel. What I was attempting to show is that gentiles are not step-children and that it does not matter if you were born Jew or Greek or Russian or Georgian, you get no special favors when it comes to the way to heaven.

Today, I get up and find this article that, I believe, illustrates my concerns. Take this quote, for examle:

An evangelical pastor and an Orthodox rabbi, both from Texas, have apparently persuaded leading Baptist preacher Jerry Falwell that Jews can get to heaven without being converted to Christianity.

Televangelist John Hagee and Rabbi Aryeh Scheinberg, whose Cornerstone Church and Rodfei Sholom congregations are based in San Antonio, told The Jerusalem Post that Falwell had adopted Hagee's innovative belief in what Christians refer to as "dual covenant" theology.

This creed, which runs counter to mainstream evangelism, maintains that the Jewish people has a special relationship to God through the revelation at Sinai and therefore does not need "to go through Christ or the Cross" to get to heaven.

Scheinberg said this has been Hagee's position for the 25 years the two have worked together on behalf of Israel and that Falwell had also come to accept it. Falwell sent a representative to the San Antonio launch of Christians United for Israel in early February, as did popular televangelist Pat Robertson.

I do not know if the Jerusalem Post is correct that Falwell believes this "dual covenant theology", or even if Hagee believes this for that matter. If they do, they are horribly, heretically, and terribly wrong. There is only one way to the Father, and it is not through ethnic descent; it is through Jesus Christ. Rejection of the Messiah of Israel is a damning choice to the Jew or Gentile. Submission to him is to share equally in the covenant promises made to Abraham. It is as simple as that.

Wow this is heavy. I will be interested to see the further developments on this story. If this is true, would this not have tremendous implications for SBC's affliation with Dr. Falwell's church and Liberty U?

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About Me

I am a pastor serving in my hometown of Albertville, Alabama. The greatest evidence of God's grace in my life are my wife, son, and daughter. One look at me and then my wife will tell you that her "yes" was a modern day miracle. Otherwise, I am almost completely mundane.